Message 33
(1)
Scripture Reading: Lev. 10:1-11
In chapters one through nine of Leviticus, we have seen the offerings and their laws, the consecration of Aaron and his sons, the initiation of the priestly service, and the issue of the priestly service. The issue of the priestly service includes the appearing of God, the appearing of God’s glory, the blessing of the people, and fire coming out from before God and consuming the burnt offering (9:24). This consuming fire, which represents God’s holiness, is used by God in two different kinds of situations, one positive and the other negative. In a positive situation, when we have something for God and offer it to God, He accepts it by consuming it with fire. This consuming is positive; it is the divine acceptance of what we are, what we do, and what we have for God. In a negative situation, holy fire comes from God as judgment. Such a negative case — the case of Nadab and Abihu — is found in Leviticus 10:1-11, the section which we will consider in this message.
The case of Nadab and Abihu in 10:1-11 goes together with the events of the previous chapter. It seems that this sad case happened on the same day in which “fire came out from before Jehovah and consumed the burnt offering and the portions of fat on the altar” (9:24).
Nadab and Abihu, sons of Aaron, did something that seemingly was good: they offered something to God. However, they offered “strange fire” (10:1), common fire, not fire from the heavens. God judged this offering of strange fire by consuming the two priests who offered it. This shows us, on the one hand, that God is merciful and kind, and, on the other hand, that He is quite severe and strict. After the blessings of that excellent and glorious day in chapter nine, the day of God’s initiation of the application of Christ to His people for their enjoyment, we might have tolerated the mistake recorded in chapter ten. But with God there was no tolerance. Immediately after God blessed, He judged.
The consuming of the offerings by the heavenly fire was altogether positive. That consuming was a strong confirmation that God is the true and living God and that He was with His people, the people of Israel. Furthermore, this consuming by fire was a confirmation of what Moses had done and of what he had told the people about God. Before that time, the Israelites might have wondered what kind of God they had, for they had heard about Him through Moses, but they had not seen Him. Now there was a particular day with all kinds of laws, regulations, and offerings, a day that was formal and official. On this day God’s glory appeared, and His blessing came upon His people. Furthermore, on this day there was the divine acceptance of the offerings. This acceptance came in the form of consuming fire. This fire came down from heaven; it was not from the earth, and it did not originate with the children of Israel. When fire came from heaven to the very spot — the altar — where the offerings were and consumed the offerings, the people saw it, shouted, and fell on their faces (9:24b).
Not long afterward, the consuming fire appeared again but in a negative way. Instead of accepting, the holy fire judged. In chapter nine the holy fire consumed in the sense of accepting; in chapter ten the holy fire consumed in the sense of judging. Concerning Nadab and Abihu, 10:2 says, “Fire came out from before Jehovah and consumed them, and they died before Jehovah.” A similar thing occurred in Acts. On the day of Pentecost the glory of God came down from heaven (Acts 2:1-4), but not long afterward a couple cheated the Holy Spirit and died as a result (Acts 5:1-11). In the case in Leviticus 10, the offering of something not sanctified, a common, worldly fire, brought in judgment. The holy, heavenly fire consumed Nadab and Abihu, and they died.
The more we consider the case of Nadab and Abihu, the more we realize that God is not only merciful but also holy, not only kind but also severe. Therefore, we should not be careless in serving Him or in touching the divine things.
Leviticus 10:9 and 10 say, “Do not drink wine or strong drink, you or your sons with you, when you come into the tent of meeting, that you may not die; it is a perpetual statute throughout your generations, that you may make a distinction between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean.” This charge indicates that the reason Nadab and Abihu offered strange fire might have been that they were drunk with wine. This made them loose and careless and caused them to act without fear. As a result, they suffered God’s holy judgment.
In both the Old Testament and the New Testament, the principle is the same concerning the result of carelessness in serving God and in touching the divine things. In the case both of Nadab and Abihu and of Ananias and Sapphira the result was death. This shows us that the careless touching of the divine things is serious and may result in death. According to the New Testament, this death may not be physical but spiritual.
Let us now consider in some detail the case of Nadab and Abihu.
In 10:1-11 we have the lesson of Nadab and Abihu. The consuming of Nadab and Abihu probably took place at the end of the day of glory and blessing described in chapter nine. What happened to these two sons of Aaron is surely a lesson for us today.
“The sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, each took his censer and put fire in it, and placed incense upon it, and offered strange fire before Jehovah, which He had not commanded them” (v. 1). This signifies man’s natural enthusiasm, natural affection, natural strength, and natural ability offered to God.
Nadab and Abihu were not judged because they did something that was not for God. They were judged because they acted according to the natural life. They did something for God, but they did it in a natural way. They might have loved God, but they loved Him in a natural way.
We should be burning for the Lord and hot; however, our hotness should not be natural but spiritual. We progress from being natural to being spiritual by taking the way of the cross. Whatever we are in the natural life should be crossed out. The natural man has already been crucified with Christ. Now in our Christian life and walk we need to hold the attitude that our natural man has been crucified and must be set aside. Since the natural life has already been condemned, we should condemn it today. We need to realize that our natural man has been judged by God on the cross, and for this reason it should not be regarded or honored.
Our serving in the church and our testifying in the meetings can easily be natural. If we speak in the meetings in a natural way, we will offer strange, or common, fire, and this will bring in spiritual death. Whenever we testify in a natural way, our being is deadened, and the meeting with its atmosphere also is deadened.
We all need to learn not to touch the holy things of God with the natural life. Not only should the things be right, but the way should also be right. It is not adequate simply to do the right thing. We must do the right thing in the right way. To offer strange fire to God is to do the right thing in the wrong way, and this brings in the judgment of death.
It is not easy to be purified from being natural. We may often exercise our natural enthusiasm, natural affection, natural strength, or natural ability. Everything natural in us needs to be dealt with.
The life of Moses is an illustration of dealing with the natural man. Moses said that “the days of our years are threescore years and ten” and that “by reason of strength” they may be fourscore years (Psa. 90:10). According to his understanding, the age of eighty marks the end of man’s life. It is significant, therefore, that Moses was called by God when he was eighty years old. This indicates that Moses’ natural life had come to an end and that whatever he did for God was in resurrection. At the age of eighty Moses had a new beginning, and from then on he did not act according to his natural life but according to a resurrection spirit.
Regardless of our age, we all need to learn not to do or say things with the natural strength, by the natural ability, or for the natural affection. We must regard everything natural as a snake, a poison.
The fire offered by Nadab and Abihu was common fire; it was not fire from the altar. The fire from the altar, having touched the offerings, was holy and also sanctified. However, Nadab and Abihu did not offer such a sanctified and sanctifying fire but a common fire. This fire was not from Jehovah but from man; it was not from the heavens but from the earth, and it had no base of propitiation. Without propitiation the situation between man and God cannot be appeased. Rather, the problems between man and God remain.
Due to the influence of Catholicism and Protestantism, many Christians today are loose and careless concerning the worship and service of God. They do not take this worship and service seriously, and the result is the exercise of the natural life issuing in spiritual death.
Leviticus 10:2 tells us that “fire came out from before Jehovah” and consumed Nadab and Abihu, and “they died before Jehovah.” This fire is the opposite of common fire. This fire is from God, not from man; it is from the heavens, not from the earth; and it is for judgment, not for acceptance.
The fire in verse 2 is also fire for the sanctification of God by His serving ones who come near to Him (v. 3a). The death of Nadab and Abihu sanctified God. Their death tells us that God is not common but holy and that we should not offer anything common to this holy God. From the death of Nadab and Abihu we learn that God must be honored as a holy God. If we are not serious with Him, we will be judged, and His judgment upon us will be His sanctification of Himself.
The fire in verse 2 was also for the glorification of God before His people (v. 3b). Aaron and the people might have felt that this consuming fire was only a matter of punishment and judgment, but with God this fire was a matter of His glorification.
“Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel, the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, Come near; carry your brothers away from the front of the holy place outside the camp. So they came near and carried them in their tunics outside the camp, as Moses had spoken” (vv. 4-5). This signifies that the deadness of unholiness should be kept away from the sphere of God’s holiness and also from the community, the fellowship, of God’s people.
“Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and to Ithamar, his sons, Do not dishevel your hair nor tear your garments, that you may not die and that He may not be angry with all the congregation” (v. 6). This signifies that even God’s death-judgment upon the relatives should not be an excuse for His serving ones to be disorderly in their subjection to the headship of Christ and to break the perfection of their conduct, that they might not suffer deadness in their spiritual life and cause God to be unhappy with His people.
The requirement in verse 6 indicates that we must mean business with God. In coming to Him and in touching His service and work, we must be serious. Even if relatives are lost due to God’s death-judgment, we must take care of God’s concern and not our own concern. Behaving in such a situation as though we have suffered no loss shows that we are under the headship of Christ.
Leviticus 10:6c says, “But let your brothers, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which Jehovah has kindled.” This signifies that the whole body of God’s people should grieve over the judgment of God upon the unholiness of His serving ones.
“And you shall not go out from the entrance of the tent of meeting so that you may not die, for the anointing oil of Jehovah is upon you” (v. 7a). The priests could not leave the entrance of the tent of meeting even to attend the funeral, because the holy anointing oil, which typifies the processed Triune God, was upon them. This signifies that God’s serving ones, bearing the Holy Spirit of God, should not leave the entering in of the church life that they may not suffer spiritual deadness.
“Jehovah spoke to Aaron, saying, Do not drink wine or strong drink, you or your sons with you, when you come into the tent of meeting, that you may not die; it is a perpetual statute throughout your generations, that you may make a distinction between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean, and that you may teach the sons of Israel all the statutes which Jehovah has spoken to them through Moses” (vv. 8-11). This signifies that God’s serving ones coming into the church life should not drink anything of the worldly enjoyment, of the fleshly interest, and of the natural excitement that they might not suffer spiritual deadness but be able to make a distinction between the holy and the common and between the clean and the unclean, and to teach God’s people His regulations.
If we pay attention to the lesson of Nadab and Abihu, we will learn a great deal. Surely this lesson will then govern us in touching the things concerning God.
